Rhinebeck Hudson Valley Half Marathon Recap

I ran the Rhinebeck Hudson Valley Half Marathon this morning! It's the first year for this race, and it was tiny - like, less than 100 people ran the half, tiny. There was also a marathon (which was pretty much just running the half course twice - no thank you) which less than 30 people ran.

Tom was super nice and drove me up to the race early this morning. It rained most of the drive, but let up before we got there. Packet pickup was a breeze, and for the first time ever at a race, there were no lines for the restrooms.

The marathon started at 8, and the half followed around 8:30 to help keep some separation between the hordes of people running - ha!

It was a really pretty course, and it was mostly rolling hills, nothing major.

I started out feeling good, which lasted until about mile 7, when I started to cycle through feelings ranging from "I got this" to "I'd like to stop now." I was shooting to stay at/under 9:00 miles, but that was just not happening. At around mile 11 I started to drag, which was aided by the fact that I realized there was no way I was going to PR. By the last mile, I was really pushing for some speed, but I just couldn't get my legs to move any faster. I didn't even do my usual sprint to the finish. I definitely let my mind get the best of me on this one.

If I didn't spend the last half mile of the race throwing myself a pity party, I would have broken 2 hours. Don't let the clock confuse you, it was started at 8 when the marathon started.

I finished in 2:00:03, a 9:10 pace.

Once I finally got over my pity party/tantrum and checked my time, I saw that I placed 3rd in my age group!

Ignore the fact that there were only 7 or 8 people in my age group. That's what I'm doing :)

It's also my second best half marathon time, so I really shouldn't complain. I've got another half in 27 days, maybe that will be my PR day!

Taper Week Workouts

It's taper week around here. I've been really trying to keep my easy runs easy, because I hear that's good for you. I've also been doing the Lunge Matrix before every run, because adding new things to your training is an excellent idea right before a race...right?

The basement has been super hot lately, so I put the fan on a chair right next to me. It helps.

This is what this week's training looked like:

Monday: 4 east miles @ 9:51 pace
Tuesday: 4 easy miles @ 9:44 pace
Wednesday: 4 miles with 2 mile repeats @ 7:30
Thursday: 4 easy miles @ 9:53

Buddy and I hung out on the floor for a while after my run on Wednesday.

And then things got a little silly.

The Rhinebeck Half is on Saturday, and, as usual, I don't really feel ready. The last time I checked, the weather is going to be a little iffy - possibly rainy. I'm still hoping that changes.

Of course I'm hoping to do well, ideally getting a PR. Since West Point was only a few minutes off of my best time (and it was hill madness), I really should be able to get there. Mostly I just need to get out of my own way and I'll probably be just fine.

I don't have a good segue, so enjoy a couple of cute Buddy pictures and have a good Friday!